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Birding Trail Guides Cleveland OH

Local resource for birding trail guides in Cleveland, OH. Includes detailed information on local businesses that provide access to birding trail guides, books on bird identification, and birding trail maps, as well as advice and content on birdwatching, bird identification, and birding trail travel.

Birding Flyways

North America's New Birding Trails

New birding and wildlife-watching trails have sprung up like wildflowers along the major flyways of North America. The trails are self-guided routes along the nation's interstates and byways that link premier birding habitats in convenient loops and spurs.

They are becoming increasingly popular because of the benefits to both bird watchers and towns along the trails. Communities with trail sites, often wildlife-rich but unable to attract tourists, have learned that birders are a boon to their economies. Trail users spend freely on travel expenses, optics, photographic supplies, and souvenirs. Local business leaders and private landowners have forged strong alliances with conservation organizations and state wildlife or tourism agencies toward mutual goals of habitat protection and ecotourism promotion.

For birders, trails open new horizons of discovery and exploration, especially in unfamiliar territories. Readily accessible trail sites on public and private lands offer a greater range of habitats in which to find specialties and rarities. Beyond the enjoyment of birding, trail users know that each purchase is an investment in local conservation efforts.

More than a dozen birding and wildlife-watching trails now crisscross the country and more are on the drawing boards in various stages of development. Most have signs with a distinctive logo, printed maps, and an Internet web page.

According to some sources there are four major migratory flyways in the United States: The Atlantic, the Central, the Mississippi, and the Pacific. Others break the flyways down even further into individual regions. However, for the sake of clarity we will examine some of these trails in three distinct groups centered around three major migratory flyways; the Central, the Atlantic, and the Pacific flyways.

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BIRDING THE CENTRAL FLYWAY

Of the major migratory routes, the Central flyway has the most birding trails, stretching from the Gulf Coast northward along the Mississippi River.

The Great Texas Coastal Birding Trail-Texas

The Great Texas Coastal Birding Trail (GTCBT), six years in the making and completed in 2000, is the granddaddy of trails and has become the blueprint for trail developers from other regions. It follows the Gulf of Mexico coastline southward from the Louisiana border to the Rio Grande Valley in south Texas and heads northwest to Laredo. Three color-coded maps with numbered sites guide birders along the many loops and spurs to stops marked with a prominent logo featuring a black skimmer.

The Texas trail draws thousands of wildlife watchers each year, who drive among its 308 hotspots in search of desert and tropical flora and fauna. For birders the main attraction is the list of 611 recorded species along the Gulf Coast and in the Rio Grande Valley.

Many of the bird-watching sites along the GTCBT have achieved legendary status, drawing a huge number of visitors especially w...

Birding Trails: A Brief History

North America's New Birding Trails

Adapted from an article by MEL WHITE

BWD's first article on birding trails in September 2001 listed 19 birding trails in the United States and Canada. Since then, at least that number of new trails has created or is being established, and there have been numerous links added to existing trails. The current pace of birding-trail births is quite rapid, and we have compiled this list of all the trails that were not on that original list. Check out a list of birding trails in the U.S., and find contact information on each trail.

A brief history of birding trails in the U.S.

For those unfamiliar with the concept of birding trails, here's a brief history: In the 1990s, public officials and private individuals in Texas increasingly came to realize that the Lone Star State's popularity with birders translated into a significant economic impact. They knew that if they could make visiting Texas even easier and more inviting, more birders would come, bringing more dollars. For some, the economic issue was enough in itself. Others saw that attracting more birders, and giving them a higher profile, could have great conservation value. That is, state and local officials might be more willing to protect habitats if they knew that people were visiting those habitats to see birds-and in the process staying in motels, buying meals, filling their gas tanks, and shopping.

Hence the creation, in 1996, of the Great Texas Coastal Birding Trail, which uses maps and road signs to link more than 300 sites from the Louisiana line down the Gulf Coast to the Rio Grande Valley. Included are famous destinations such as High Island and Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge, as well as lesser-known preserves, city parks, and roadside observation points. The notes and directions on the maps serve birders well, pointing the way to spots that might otherwise be overlooked, and that often provide just as many birds, and just as much fun, as the high-profile locations.

Conservation agencies and tourism offices in other states took notice of what was happening in Texas. Florida, Georgia, and Virginia were among the first states to emulate Texas by creating official birding trails, and the list has grown year by year. In some states or regions the process has been spearheaded by local Audubon chapters or other birding organizations, providing expertise to assist a consortium of governmental bodies, including wildlife agencies, tourism bureaus, and highway departments.

All this is good news for birders, since an ever-expanding percentage of North America is being covered by birding trails, with their detailed maps, driving directions, species lists, birding tips, and other travel-friendly features. For a phone call, a stamp, or an Internet click, you can obtain information about the birding trail (or trails) at your destination via a map or brochure. Often the information is free, though some trails charge a minimal fee or request a donati...

Birding Trails: Contact Information

North America's Birding Trails: Contact Information

Adapted from an article by Mel White

BWD's first article on birding trails in September 2001 listed 19 birding trails in the United States and Canada. Since then, at least that number of new trails has created or is being established, and there have been numerous links added to existing trails. The current pace of birding-trail births is quite rapid, and we have compiled this list of all the trails that were not on that original list. Check out a brief history of birding trails in the U.S., and find an in-depth description on each trail.

Click the binocular icons on the map below to quickly locate contact information for a specific trail.

Mississippi River V...

Local resource for woodpecker birdhouses in Cleveland, OH. Includes detailed information on local businesses that provide access to woodpecker birdhouses, birdhouses, bird feeders, bird house plans, and bird house designs, as well as advice and content on bird house building, attracting birds, and bird house kids.